Romanian sculptor Demetre Chiparus — who is sometimes referred to as Dumitru Chiparus or Dimitri Chiparus — was a renowned Art Deco-era artist most often associated with realism. He initially created sculptures that featured small children. As his work began to mature, he continued to create figurative sculptures but shifted his focus, and his output was marked by an appreciation for the lithe female form — a popular subject during the 1920s. Chiparus was later known for his animal sculptures, too.
Chiparus lived comfortably as an artist owing in part to his family fortune. At the age of 23, he moved to Italy and began his formal art and sculpting studies under Italian sculptor Raffaello Romanelli. Following his time in Italy, he moved to Paris where he attended L'École des Beaux-Arts. He studied under sculptors Antonin Mercie and Jean Boucher. He was inspired by the Russian Ballet, French theater and early motion pictures.
Though he wouldn’t sell many of his pieces during his lifetime, Chiparus was well known for his bright and colorful busts and sculptures featuring dancing ladies. He was equally inspired by the discovery of King Tut’s tomb — a common influence for designers and artists of the Art Deco era — which is obvious in his references to Egyptian themes in his decorative objects and other realist works.
Chiparus worked with a combination of ivory and bronze to create chryselephantine sculptures, a method and type of sculpture that was particularly popular during the Archaic period. The bases of his pieces were typically made of marble or onyx and he adorned his life-like subjects with vibrant enamel that lent a touch of whimsicality to his art.
Chiparus exhibited his works at the Salon of 1914 and lived in Paris until his death. A range of his sculptures is held in the permanent collection of the Museo Art Nouveau and Art Deco in Spain.
Find original Demetre Chiparus decorative objects, sculptures and other works on 1stDibs.
Demetre Chiparus Egyptian Dancer
By Demetre Chiparus
Located in Miami, FL
Demetre Chiparus Egyptian Dancer, ca. 1920 Bronze, enamel, gilt metal, and marble 29 in Signed to base 'Chiparus'
Bronze
Oriental Dancer
By Demetre Chiparus
Located in Miami, FL
Oriental Dancer Cold-painted Bronze Figure, circa 1925 on a shaped marble plinth inset with bronze medallions 15 in high, signed to base 'Chiparus' Demetre Chiparus was a Romanian s...
Bronze
Return from the Tiger hunt
By Roger Godchaux 1
Located in PARIS, FR
"Return from the Hunt" also named '"Return from the Tiger hunt" by Roger GODCHAUX (1878-1958) Remarkable bronze group with a nuanced dark greenish brown patina Signed on the base "...
Bronze
$1,600
H 4.75 in W 8 in D 4 in
Thoroughbred, Art Deco Bronze Sculpture by Loet Vanderveen
By Loet Vanderveen
Located in Long Island City, NY
Loet Vanderveen, Dutch (1921 - 2015) - Thoroughbred, Medium: Bronze sculpture, signature and numbering inscribed on bottom, Edition: 235/500, Size: 4.75 x 8 x 4 in. (12.07 x 20.3...
Bronze
$1,967
H 12.8 in W 4.73 in D 2.76 in
Naked warrior with short sword / - The New Hercules -
Located in Berlin, DE
Hermann Volz (1847 Karlsruhe - 1914 ibid.), Naked warrior with short sword, c. 1935. Partially (?) patinated bronze with cast plinth mounted on a black marble base (6.8 cm high). 32....
Bronze
$6,500
H 19.5 in W 23.25 in D 6.25 in
Antique French Art deco Leaping Stag Bronze Statue Sculpture Bronze marble 1925
By Georges H. Laurent
Located in Portland, OR
A fine & large antique French Art Deco Bronze leaping stag sculpture/statue, by Georges H. Laurent (1880-1940), circa 1925. Georges H. Laurent was known for his animal subjects and t...
Bronze
Owl, Art Deco Bronze Sculpture on Marble Base
Located in Long Island City, NY
Unknown Artist - Owl, Medium: Bronze Sculpture on Marble Base, Size: 12 x 4 x 3.25 in. (30.48 x 10.16 x 8.26 cm), Frame Size: BASE SIZE: 2 x 4.75 x 4.75 inches
Marble, Bronze
Girl with a Kid / - Caresses of innocence -
By Ary Bitter
Located in Berlin, DE
Ary Bitter (1883 Marseille - 1973 Paris), Girl with Kid, around 1930. Green patinated bronze with cast plinth loosely mounted on a white-veined dark green marble base. Dimensions of the plinth: 5 cm (height) x 80 cm (length) x 24 (width), dimensions of the bronze 28 cm (height) x 72 cm (length) x 18 cm (width). Weight of the bronze 18.2 kg, total weight 39.2 kg. Signed “Ary Bitter.” on the plinth and stamped “L N Paris J L” by the foundry Les Neveux de Jacques Lehmann...
Bronze
$1,295
H 9 in W 5 in D 4 in
Antique French Bronze Animalier Sculpture Statue Rooster Cockerel Chicken
Located in Portland, OR
A very handsome antique French bronze of a rooster, by Louis-Albert Carvin (1875-1951), the bronze is signed and dates circa 1900. This very lovely antique bronze was created circa ...
Marble, Bronze
$4,500
H 8.2 in W 4.6 in D 2.75 in
Ferdinand Preiss Hoop Girl And Sonny Boy Painted Bronze Figures
By Ferdinand Preiss
Located in Dallas, TX
Ferdinand Preiss (German, 1882 - 1943) Hoop Girl & Sonny Boy Cold-painted bronze Circa 1930, Art Deco Period Dimensions: 8.18 Inches Tall x 4.65 Inches wide x 2.75 inches deep. ...
Marble, Bronze
Goalkeeper
Located in Los Angeles, CA
An Art Deco bronze with a rich chocolate brown patina of a figure of a goalkeeper. The figure is stretching up to parry away the football, on an integral hexagonal base. C. 1925, sig...
Bronze
Water Carrier
By Pierre Le Faguays
Located in Los Angeles, CA
PIERRE LE FAGUAYS "WATER CARRIER" BRONZE AND ALABASTER, SIGNED ELECTRIFIED FRANCE, C.1925 15.5 INCHES A French sculptor of lithe female f...
Bronze
$2,595
H 17 in W 10 in D 9.5 in
Antique French Art Deco Bronze Bust Sculpture Head of Beautiful Young Girl 1920
By Marcel-André Bouraine
Located in Portland, OR
Antique French Art Deco Bronze bust sculpture of a beautiful young woman, by Marcel Andre Bouraine (1886-1948), and cast by the Etling foundry, Paris, circa 1920. The bronze depicts...
Marble, Bronze
$2,975
H 19.5 in W 10 in D 8 in
Justice, Bronze Sculpture, Art Deco, Signed, Edition of 500, 1984
By Erté
Located in Aventura, FL
Bronze sculpture. Incised Erte signature with stamped numbered edition, foundry and date. From the edition of 500. Size: 19.5 x 10 x 8 inches. Published by Fine Art Acquisitions. ...
Bronze
Sold
H 9.5 in W 14.75 in D 3 in
Antique French Art Deco Bronze Figural Group/Statue 1930's D. H. Chiparus
By Demetre Chiparus
Located in Portland, OR
Antique French Art Deco Bronze Figural Group/Statue, Demetre Haralamb Chiparus (1886-1947), 1930s. The bronze showing a whimsical scene of a ...
Marble, Bronze
woman
By Demetre Chiparus
Located in Nice, FR
A rare sculpture made of clay by Demeter Chiparus, representing a sit nude woman. Signed on the sculpture. On a wood basement. Demétre Haralamb Chiparus...
Clay
Wheat Art Deco by Demetre Chiparus
By Demetre Chiparus
Located in Miami, FL
Beautiful large work and it's very heavy. Bronze with green and gold patina. It is very heavy
Bronze